When we meet
by Imonlymildlyashamed
Summary: Killua and Gon fall in love a few times. Modern AU
1. When first we meet,

The first time, it'd been a pleasant winter afternoon, the cold having receded a little.

He and his mother had seen a pale yellow sign in the door.

"Shoe repair"

They had stopped their walk on the town, as his mother looked at his shoes.

They lay nearly in tatters around his feet.

His eyes shimmered up an innocent blue.

The tiny hand in hers, she tugged him across the street, to the sign. To the door. To the room.

The white tiled, bright lit room.

The tiles were small, like a bathroom.

The boy hugged his mother.

She talked with the owner, both chattering broken English.

The boy closes his eyes, imagining being home and alone.

They continued talking.

They stopped as a gentle hand tapped Killua.

He opened his eyes to sunshine his age.

Boy. Boy his age.

The sun smiled, and pointed to his shoes.

"¿Éstos?"

Killua looked to his mother, who nodded.

So he looked back to the boy and did the same.

And as the tan boy kneeled down and gently, ever so gently, placed his shoe upon his knee, he began to giggle.

Killua started to speak, but changed his mind.

Settling to blush and turn away.

But the gentle tap returned.

Killua looked back up to see the boy pointing to his own shoes.

Nearly scraps around his heels.

Killua simply started to giggle, barely hidden behind his palm.

So they giggled at each other, sharing the joke.

As Killua's laugh bubbled pleasantly, the boy claimed his shoes, taking them through a door behind him.

Killua's feet were cold, on those small tiles.

Killua curled his legs up on the chair.

The adults sputtered more English, and exchanged a palm full of coins.

The owner shouted over her shoulder.

"Gon!"

The s-

boy came back.

Gon

He handed Killua another pair.

They were rough, the fabric stiff.

As he stood up with them on, they rubbed his heels painfully and he made a small noise.

It was supposed to be silent.

The boy's face furrowed in concern.

Killua's eyes widened a little.

The boys look remained curious as he cocked his head to the side.

Killua started to speak, but his face settled into a frown.

The boy thought for a moment, then spoke to the owner in... Spanish?

Then the owner spoke to Killua's mother.

Then her to him.

" Hvad er forkert? "  
[What's wrong?]

"I... intet"  
[Nothing]

To respond, she simply frowned.

Killua flinched, then gave in.

"Sko ondt"  
[The shoes hurt]

His mother knit her brows.

"Jeg lagde ikke mærke til."  
[I didn't notice]

Killua shrugged. Not meeting her eyes.

They stayed there a moment.

Until she turned away, and spoke to the old lady behind the counter.

Who spoke to the boy.

Who stood for a moment, chin on hand, then held up two fingers.

Killua's mother nodded, then tugged Killua out behind him.

He stared back to the boy, waving in tiny, hidden moves with the hand not holding his mothers.

The boy waved, with large and energetic movements and sunny smile.

Killua looked away, afraid to burn.


	2. When next we meet,

The second time, Gon was working when he heard the bell ring.

He set down the needle, then stretched to get the chink from his back.

The bell at the front desk rang.

Gon turned on his heel and walked through the door.

Blue met green eyes.

Gon froze, partway through stepping.

The angel froze, hand hovering above the bell.

Then, in two different languages,

"¡Es por ti!"

"Det er dig!"

They both paused again, trying to parse what the other said.

Then the other boy tried again, this time in English.

"It is you!"

Gon paused, as he thought for moment.

" **It's** you." He emphasized on the shortened phrase.

The other boy looked away while scratching his cheek and spilled out a few... aggressive words under his breath.

He rubbed his hand in his hair to shake loose his thoughts, then slapped his boot onto the counter.

Gon looked down at the boot, then up at the other boy, ready to chide him for stepping on the counter.

As he took his breath to start however, the boy smirked and pointed back to his boot.

Gon leaned down to look at the boot, noting the abundance of torn fabric, the number of burns, and the... shattered ceramic tip?

Gon doubled over laughing, as the other boy smiled victoriously.

The smile slipped though, when Gon brought up his own shoe and slapped it onto the table.

Proudly displaying the missing chunks of rubber, the obviously replaced laces, and the dented steel toe.

The boy stared from Gon, to the shoe and back again.

Laughter filled the shop that smells like burnt rubber.

As the laughing subsided to chuckling, and the fiery haired owner stomps in.

The following flurry of Spanish and English shouting and pushing resulted in two shoeless ten year olds in the street.

As they lay in a comical pile on the street, Gon lets out a grunt as the other boy kicks off of him.

"I need something to do while she has my shoes."

Gon looks up to see the other boy hiding a blush, and smiles a little.

"Sure."

It's warm day, so they have that.


	3. When last we meet,

The third time, Killua is standing outside the store, rubbing his sweating palms on his jeans.

He remembered the sunny smile.

He remembered the chipper goodbye.

He looked down at the box in his elbow, and knew he needed to stay goodbye.

He let a slow breath.

Then another.

He pressed his palm to the door and pushed into the small, smelly, tiny tiled space.

Gon was leaning over the desk behind the counter, apparently working on something.

He hadn't pushed to door far enough to ring the bell. He could still turn around.

A cheery jingle bounced around the tiny shop.

And so Gon swiveled around in his chair, to turn and see the frail-looking boy holding the box in his arm.

"Killua."

"Gon."

Gon's face is impassive, determined. Even as he puts his tattered boot on the counter.

Killua smirks and places his own boot on the counter.

Gon steps of the counter and inspects Killua's shoe.

"It's... intact"

Killua smiles ear to ear as Gon looks up, face almost horrified.

"Fabric knit from 27% Kevlar, tire rubber soles and fabric treated with fire-retardant mineral based fluid. Ceramic tip covered in a 6 millimeter layer of titanium. Nylon coated rubber laces."

Gon burst into a fit of wild laughter as his friend smiled triumphantly.

After several minutes, Gon tugged himself up on the counter, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"Gee- eheheh... Jesus Killua..."

"Yeah. Only two made."

With that, Killua slid the box forward.

Gon looked from the box, to the boy, and back to the box.

"KILLLLUUUUAAAAA!"

With this shout, Gon leaped over the counter, falling in a tangled pile with Killua.

"Eres un dios, muchas gracias, Creo que te... amo, eres... el mejor amigo... de siempre..."

As this barrage of affection dissolved into blubbering and incoherent noises, Killua's arms immediately shoved the smiling, crying boy.

"Geeze, no need to cry about it... Just a... uhh..."

Gon laughed over the tears hanging on his face.

"Having trouble?"

"Shut up... fjols."

"I... what? "fjols?" Did you really forget the word "idiot"? It's probably your favorite."

"Shut up, you lost your mind over shoes and I think you called me god."

Gon looked up him after wiping his face.

It had a curious smile.

Best described as baiting.

Killua was shaken from his slightly paranoid thoughts by the breath on his face.

"Since when can you speak Spanish?"

Killua debated telling him that he had fought to tooth and nail to understand what a boy he barely knew was saying.

It wasn't a long debate.

"I've changed since we were five."

Gon wasn't fazed by the deflection, but he let it go.

"I know! You look like a rock star!"

Killua couldn't help laughing at that.

 _Gon is just so stupid sometimes!_

The resulting pout was also too good to pass up.

"What? You look like rock star!"

"Idiot, how do I look like a rock star?"

"Are you joking? The crazy hair, the torn pants, the altitude?"

Killua was grinning.

"The what?"

"The altitude. The way you-"

He was cut short by a flick to the forehead.

"OW! What was that for?"

"Attitude. You mean attitude. Altitude his how high you are."

"oh." Gon said simply, while rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Idiot."

"Hey! You always-"

The following hours until sundown pass similarly. They prowled the town, childish and stumbling over foreign words.

They cause trouble, they get caught, they have the time of their lives and, most importantly, they bought a pair of stylish shades to complete Killua's "rock star" look.

And as they returned to the small room, Killua came crashing down.

The box.

Gon looked back him as he paused in the door frame.

"Goodbye."

This made Gon cock his head to the side.

"So fast?"

"The shoes are goodbye."

Gon looked away.

"Oh."

Killua took this chance to hate himself.

"I'm sorry. I need to leave. My family..."

Gon didn't look back.

"I'm sorry."

Neither were entirely sure what he was apologizing for.

"I'm going to America. Funny how it is."

Gon turned and walked towards him.

A strange and raw intensity is in his eyes.

"I'll find you."

Killua's brain was stuck on the movement of his lips before it could focus on the words coming out.

"...what?"

"Six months. I need to finish here, but I will find you."

Killua turned away, and quietly, supposedly silently, and with great affection said:

"Idiot."

And with that, he left the small, smelly shop and walked into the brisk night.

In the vain hopes his blush wouldn't burst into flames.


End file.
